Life of a Blogger {8}: Halloween

Life of a Blogger is a weekly bookish meme hosted by the lovely Jessi of Novel Heartbeat, shining the spotlight on bloggers on a more personal level 🙂 Every week she chooses a topic and shares about her life, encouraging other bloggers to do the same. Today’s topic is Halloween.

Halloween

So I’m going to confess something, and it’s not going to be a popular view. I don’t like Halloween. There, I said it!

I should probably clarify this, before a lynch mob comes after me – if I lived in the USA, I’d probably love Halloween. Dressing up may not be my favourite thing, but if I’d grown up with it as a part of my culture I’d feel differently I’m sure. Also, chocolate and lollies, YUM.

But I don’t live in the USA, I live in Australia, and in my view Halloween is not a part of our culture. All Hallow’s Eve is one thing, but the Halloween you see in the movies, that’s different. We’ve never done the trick-or-treating, the dressing up, none of it – until recently, Halloween didn’t even exist in Australia.

Of course it’s not that simple. Australia is becoming more and more Americanised – we watch so much American TV and movies (I’m not complaining about that!), their celebrities are our celebrities, their politicians and major events make our news programs on an almost daily basis. Kids see Halloween in the American media and want to participate. However, unlike when I was a kid, now it’s actually becoming a thing.

It’s now on our TV shows, there are costumes and halloween themed items in our supermarkets and department stores. I watched a segment on the Australian Today Show about Halloween last week – a few years ago, that would’ve been unheard of. Kids are actually going trick-or-treating! Luckily I live in a set of units which is fairly tucked away, and I don’t have to worry about people knocking on my door – I won’t have anything to give them!

I don’t know, maybe I’m just the Grinch of Halloween. I think it totally belongs in America, it’s an institution! In Australia though, it just feels like it’s been manufactured by the shops as a way to make more money… What a cynic I am!

What about you, do you like Halloween? Does it even exist in your country?

10 responses to “Life of a Blogger {8}: Halloween”

Hmm true! I have noticed many things about our culture and Halloween slipping in is definitely one of them! I can imagine that by the time I have kids, there will indeed be Halloween! But I don’t mind to be honest. I think it’s cute and like you I LOVE dressing up! 😀 As long as we don’t forget the real meaning of All Hallows Eve, like we shouldn’t forget the real history of Christmas, I don’t see the problem with having this become a tradition.

I’m not a fan of Halloween either. Yeah sure its all a bit of fun, but kind of demanding too. “We’re cute kids dressed up knocking on your door uninvited, give us lollies!” No thanks! I just don’t see the appeal if I’d been American, maybe I would think differently.

I completely and 100% agree with you. I don’t do halloween (I’ve never done it!) and it just seems weird that we’re running after America with that. Why do we need it?!! It seems rather pointless to me, and the origins of Halloween is kind of…weird. To consider that now it’s a holiday specifically for kids and lollies when it was originally about devils and demony stuff. PEOPLE ARE WEIRD. We have a few trick-or-treaters on our street this year, but we have the kind of driveway that’s super steep and super long, so it discourages them. I feel a little bad, but I truly am the grinch of Halloween too. >_<

I’m so glad my driveway is super long and uninviting – it’s not lit up at all, so no unwanted visitors on Halloween. I’ve never done it and I hope I never do, I just find it ridiculous that it’s becoming a part of our society – I don’t see Americans celebrating quintessentially Aussie events like Melbourne Cup Day…